1912 – Herbert Lee Is Born
Herbert Lee was a voting rights activist and martyr of the Mississippi civil rights movement. Born January 1, 1912, in Liberty, Mississippi, he became a successful dairy farmer and NAACP member despite limited formal education. In the 1950s and early 1960s, Lee worked to register Black voters and assisted SNCC organizer Robert “Bob” Moses amid intense white intimidation.
On September 25, 1961, Lee was shot and killed by Mississippi State Representative E.H. Hurst in Liberty. An all-white jury ruled the murder justified, and Hurst was never convicted. Lee’s legacy is honored by a historical marker at the site of his death.
1923 – Milton “Bags” Jackson Is Born
Milton “Milt” Jackson, known as “Bags,” was born January 1, 1923, in Detroit, Michigan. A multi-instrumentalist, he began on guitar and piano before mastering the vibraphone. Early performances led to collaborations with Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, and other jazz greats.
Jackson became a founding member and defining voice of the Modern Jazz Quartet, anchoring its sound for over two decades. A prolific soloist and collaborator, he recorded widely and composed classics like “Bags’ Groove.” Widely regarded as a jazz vibraphone pioneer, Jackson died in 1999 at age 76.
2005 – Shirley Chisholm Passes Away
Shirley Anita St. Hill Chisholm made history in 1968 as the first Black woman elected to the U.S. Congress and, in 1972, as the first Black person to seek a major party’s presidential nomination. Representing Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant, she fearlessly challenged congressional norms to better serve her community. Born to Barbadian immigrants, Chisholm built a career in education and politics, later authoring Unbought and Unbossed. After Congress, she taught and lectured widely. She died on January 1, 2005 in Florida.
